Posts Tagged ‘Sam Attal’

You Better Win. More demanding words have never been spoken in the history of racing. In an infamous three word memo to his engineers and executives prior to the 1966 LeMans 24 Hour endurance race, Henry Ford II would stand for nothing less than victory. Read more...

When a 21-year-old John Morton took a job in Carroll Shelby’s Cobra shop in the mid-1960s, sweeping floors and chasing parts, he had a dream. Much of that dream came true for him, but in what could be called a great and celebrated road racing career, he does have regrets and disappointments. Read more...

The annual WekFest gathering in San Francisco always has something tasteful to offer. The event brings a sense of unity and community among car builders and enthusiasts from all parts of California, but especially in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Today's visit is no different. With hundreds of amazing builds to gaze upon packed into San Francisco's Fort Mason Center, the event becomes a bit overwhelming. It really is a sensory overload. Read more...

As you witnessed in the first part of coverage from the Bay Area AE86 meet at One Toyota of Oakland, the gathering was a great mix of both hachi rokus and other machines. While more and more cars rolled in, it became harder to pay attention to each car individually. And, although it seemed as if there was almost an equal ratio of AE86s to dope non-AE86s, everyone remembered what car the day was commemorating. Read more...

In the tuner world, the AE86 platform should be considered one of the most important and influential gems that has come from Japanese engineering and research. Even with today's sophisticated technology being used to develop high-performance machines with more than twice the power of a Hachi-Roku, it's hard to forget what this amazing little car did for the general public. Despite the fact that the machine didn't have some of the better features and strengths of some of the other cars its age and younger, it had one great sense of appeal to it: the price.

The common man didn't have to settle with just dreaming about the AE86 and gazing over pictures of its bodywork in magazines. No, instead, the common man could actually get behind the wheel of one since a new, fully-loaded CorollaGT-S would cost on average $12,000 at the time. And though AE86 became the last generation of the affordable front-engine, rear-wheel-drive compact from Toyota (until the FR-S/FT-86, we hope), it is still remembered, still used and still loved by the common man. And that love is why the Bay Area joins together each year to celebrate this iconic vehicle. I give you The Bay Area 8-6 Day meet! Read more...

"Drifting will continue to grow, but that's only if we continue to support drifters on the amateur level, and most importantly, the people who organize the grassroots drifting events. After all, it is those people who are building new drifters and teaching them how to drive." - Antonio Alvendia in Drifting: Sideways from Japan to America

Despite the obvious plug (forgive me), what Antonio said in 2006 is evident five years later.
These grassroots events are where many of the nation's best drifters first made their marks. While Japan was fortunate to have small, frequent drift events, Americans were left to figure out ways to get their tracks open to such a sport.
Now, after years of consistent growth and the expansion of our own small drift events, we've come to see plenty of tracks around the nation become accustomed to drifting. These events have been paramount in molding skilled drifters, some of whom have made it in the big leagues.
However, for many years now, the San Francisco Bay Area hasn't been able to provide a consistent outlet for its "home grown" talent. Sure, the ThunderDrift events are great, but those are nearly two or three hours away from The Bay. Many drivers simply don't want to make a four-to-six-hour round trip. Now they won't have to.
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A couple of weeks ago, I shed some light on the Comrades FC3S Truckasaurus RX7 from Fatlace WordUp!, a drift and gymkhana session in held once a month in Santa Clara, CA. The event is only open to 15 drivers and members of the media - no spectators are allowed. It is the closest thing we have to Drift Day in the Bay Area and is centered on providing a safe venue for those who wish to better their skills in a safe environment.
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Not too long ago I attended Fatlace WordUp, a monthly drift practice session in Santa Clara, CA that is only open to drivers and media. While most of the cars in attendance consisted of your average beat-up S13s and AE86s, one machine in particular caught my eye. This loud, sparkly red, slammed 1987 RX7 pickup truck conversion was the center of attention as it attacked corners with massive angle. The car, or truck, belongs to Earl Smith of the Comrades Crew from Washington. He recently moved down to California and this was the first time I saw the project at an event so let's check it out...
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